Sam Cooke

Sam Cooke (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964) was a popular and influential gospel, R&B, soul, and pop singer, born Samuel Cook in Clarksdale, Mississippi.

Related Topics:
January 22 - 1931 - December 11 - 1964 - Gospel - R&B - Soul - Pop - Singer - Clarksdale, Mississippi

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He was one of eight children born to Rev. Charles and Mrs. Annie Mae Cook. The family moved to Chicago in 1933.

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Cooke began his musical career as a member of a quartet with his siblings, the Soul Children, followed by a turn as a teenager as a member of the Highway QCs, a gospel group. In 1950, at the age of 19, he joined The Soul Stirrers and achieved significant success and fame within the gospel community.

Related Topics:
Soul Children - Highway QCs - 1950 - The Soul Stirrers

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His first pop single, "Lovable" (1956) was released under the alias of "Dale Cooke," in order to not alienate his fan base—there was a considerable taboo against gospel singers performing secular music. The alias failed to hide Cooke's unique and distinctive vocals, however, and fans openly expressed their disapproval. Specialty Records, the label of the Soul Stirrers, complained to Bumps Blackwell, Cooke's pop producer, resulting in the loss of Cooke's contract. He then signed with Keen Records in 1957, releasing a song he composed with his brother, L.C., "You Send Me", which spent six weeks at #1 on the Billboard R&B chart but which also had massive mainstream success, spending three weeks at #1 on the Billboard pop chart.

Related Topics:
1956 - Specialty Records - Bumps Blackwell - Keen Records - 1957 - Billboard R&B chart - Billboard pop

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As if a R&B performer writing his own songs and achieving mainstream fame was not innovative enough, Cooke continued to astonish the music business in the 1960s with the founding of his own label, SAR Records, which soon included The Simms Twins, The Valentinos, Bobby Womack, and Johnnie Taylor. Cooke then created a publishing imprint and management firm, then left Keen to sign with RCA. His first RCA single was the hit "Chain Gang"; this is probably his most famous song, and it reached #2 on the Billboard pop chart. This was followed by more hits, including "Sad Mood", "Bring it on Home to Me" (a duet with Lou Rawls), "Another Saturday Night" and "Twistin' the Night Away".

Related Topics:
1960s - SAR Records - The Simms Twins - The Valentinos - Bobby Womack - Johnnie Taylor - RCA - Chain Gang

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Like most R&B artists of his time, Cooke focused on singles; in all he had 29 top 40 hits on the pop charts, and more on the R&B charts. In spite of this, he released a critically acclaimed blues-inflected LP in 1963, Night Beat. He was known for having written many of the most popular songs of all time in the genre, and is often uncredited for many of them by the general public.

Related Topics:
Blues - 1963 - Night Beat

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Cooke died at the age of 33 under mysterious circumstances on December 11, 1964 in Los Angeles, California. Though the details of the case are still in dispute, it seems he was shot to death by Bertha Franklin (the manager of the Hacienda Motel, where Cooke was staying), who claimed that he had raped a young woman, then threatened Franklin, and that she killed him in self-defense. The verdict was justifiable homicide, though many believe that crucial details did not come out in court, or were buried afterward. Cooke was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Glendale, California.

Related Topics:
December 11 - 1964 - Los Angeles, California - Bertha Franklin - Hacienda Motel - Justifiable homicide - Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery - Glendale, California

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Some posthumous releases followed, many of which became hits, including "A Change Is Gonna Come", an early protest song which is generally regarded as his greatest composition.

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After Cooke's death, his widow, Barbara, married Bobby Womack. Cooke's daughter, Linda, later married Bobby's brother, Cecil.

Related Topics:
Bobby Womack - Linda - Cecil

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Cooke was inducted as a charter member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986.

Related Topics:
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame - 1986

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Cooke's influence has been immense: even people who has never heard one of his records, have still heard his voice and phrasing if they have listened to any Rod Stewart or Southside Johnny. Other rock artists with a notable Cooke heritage include The Animals, Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, and numerous others, while R&B and soul artists indebted to Cooke include Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, Otis Redding, Lou Rawls, Al Green, and again many more.

Related Topics:
Rod Stewart - Southside Johnny - The Animals - Simon and Garfunkel - James Taylor - Bruce Springsteen - Smokey Robinson - Marvin Gaye - Otis Redding - Lou Rawls - Al Green

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